Tag Archives: sharing

ProfessionalLearning, scaling change, WRDSB

Scaling EDU Change

February 27, 2017 markwcarbone 2 Comments

Last fall the Waterloo Region District School Board held their third Digital Learning Symposium. Each symposium has focused on sharing effective classroom practice, changing practice and promoting innovative practices.

The series of events has provided an opportunity for educators to come together, share, network and talk about next steps to pushing the envelope, building synergy and scaling change at the system level.

One of the strategies used at this recent symposium was to capture the best practices shared through video recording and create a WRDSB system blog to share the learnings and innovative approaches through other initiatives such as meetings of system leaders, school staff meetings and subject association sessions. It is important to keep the momentum of the change conversation going. This public blog also supports open learning for all educators.

Student Produced Learning Objects
Project Greenlight
Leveraging Technology for Inquiry Based Learning
Deepening Mathematics Understanding with Coding
STEM in a Globally Connected Classroom
Digital Work Flow
Student Writing With Storybird
Helping Little Brown Bats
Tangling With Triangulation

I have enjoyed being involved in this project and look forward to working on the next phase.

Join in!!!. How will you participate in open learning by scaling up?

~Mark

Note 1: The blogging project calls for a post week through until May, so the sharing will continue through to May.

Note 2: Creative Commons image by Flickr user Paolo Margari

Leadership Perspective

A Perspective on “RESET”

September 2, 2014 markwcarbone Leave a comment

There is something about the start of a new school year that seems to put me an a place of both wondering & reflection. In some ways, the start of the school year is in effect the pressing of the big ‘RESET‘ button — everything starts fresh with new: timetables, class groupings, introductions, friendships, experiences, chances to make a difference … Well, the list could go on and on, but you get the picture: opportunity and hope. Hold that thought.

This weekend I attended a memorial service and left feeling inspired. Why? The service was very personalized with music performed by family members and the stories about what was important in their Dad’s life. Then it happened — the part that really stayed with me. A few key elements of their father’s life were highlighted as “lessons learned”.

And there it was – underscored, wait, make that underscored: the importance of reflecting. The “lessons learned” in this case applied to both school and life in general. Paraphrasing in my own words now, the lessons focused on relationships, boundless learning, growing without limits, the importance of sewing seeds to nurture encouragement, and, to share.

Without doubt, this is a powerful message, and so appropriate for the beginning of a school year.

Photo credit: my own

What new perspectives will you bring to the 14/15 school year? How will you foster and role model boundless learning, positive relationships, sowing seeds and sharing? What impact will your actions have on the opportunities and hopes of those around you?

Recommended Related Reading: Who are you leaving out? by Donna Miller Fry.

~Mark